Only the Ring Finger Knows: Lunar Arc
by fiirymist
Summary: Two rings. One Fate. Through the truth, lies, and all the pretendings. YueXRuby.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This story is base on the plot of " Only the Ring Finger Knows", loosely.

I really like this story, and when I read it, I just thought that the two characters fit these two perfectly and well you know. Well, if you haven't read the story, you might want to if you like this one. And if you have, don't worry, it's not going to be exactly the same, so it won't be boring.

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, the plot, well, most of it, and ummm, so we've established that I don't own anything … … Moving on.

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It was a Monday morning, a lovely Monday morning to be exact.

Birds were chirping happily.

The sun was shining.

A light breeze was blowing. Caressing pedestrians' hairs and clothes. Just the slightest movement and then it was gone.

The perfect setting for something magical and extraordinary to happen.

But of course, that kind of thing never happens to me, Nakuru thought bitterly, pouting her lips in the slightest. She really disliked days like these, so story-like, so … so perfect. Days so magical, yet leaves her no different than before, just full of disappointment. She hates disappointments. 

"Nakuru-chan, what do you think?"

Nakuru blinked, and turned only to face the expectant expressions of her companions.

"Eh?"

Rinku, the brown-haired girl sighed, she can't wait until the day her friend start actually paying attention when others are talking. But before she could reply, or even open her mouth, someone else answered Nakuru's question.

"You know, THE rings!" The blond in the group had spoken-Leena.

Nakuru blinked again, _maybe she really should start paying attention more often._

Seeing her confusion, the group of girls around her collectively sighed. They were on their way to school, and since they all lived pretty close to each other, they often walked together.

Rinku picked up the conversation again, attempting to involve her clueless friend.

"You know, the rings that couples often wear to show their love for each other? The matching ones?"

Blink.

Leena slapped her forehead, why do they even try? She turned around and grabbed Nakuru's hand, dragging her ahead towards a gift shop.

"Ow!!" Nakuru whined as she was practically hauled across the sidewalk, her long red hair flowing behind her like a flag. Like she wasn't drawing enough attention as it is. Before she realized it, her face was pushed into a rack of plastic wrappings.

"These, are what we were talking about!"

Nakuru felt her eyes cross as she tried to focus on the little package of plastic thrusted into her face. Feeling dizzy from the effort, she pushed her friend's eager hands away. Blowing a piece of stray hair out of her face, Nakuru bent down and picked up a little package that had fell on the ground. _Wow, this is really pretty,_ Nakuru thought as she studied the object in her hand. In the package was a tiny little ring. Silver in colour with a thin band. The ring is surprisingly simple, with no attachments and only carvings for decoration. The carving itself is quite straight-ward as well, a wailing moon extending into two vines, going around the entire circumference of the ring. It was what most would consider plain, unworthy of a second glance. However, to Nakuru, it is one of the most beautiful things she has ever seen. Even if it is a cheap toy ring from a gift shop. Her thoughts were cut short when she realized that her friends were talking to her.

"Nakuru-chan?"

Still somewhat awed, Nakuru only managed a "Huh?" for an answer.

Rinku sweatdropped, so typical. Then she smiled as she notice the tell-tale package in her friend's hands. Curious, Rinku leaned in to take a closer look. As if they were one, all the other girls mimicked her movement as well. Soon, Nakuru had a crowd of girls around her, all staring intently at her hand.

"Are you going to buy it?"

Then something just clicked.

"YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!"

The girls sighed collectively, again, as they watched Nakuru bounce up and down towards a very frightened cashier while knocking over piles of gifts. Well, they are never coming here ever again.

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Walking along the sidewalk, she couldn't help but admire the newly bought ring in her hand, still in its shiny little package. However, the farther they walked, the more depressed she got.

Noticing the sudden, and not so conspicuous rain cloud over Nakuru's head, Leena questioned, "What's wrong, Nakuru-chan?" Feeding on the attention, Nakuru's depression got even more, depressing. Leena could've sworn that rain drops were actually forming on top of Nakuru's head.

"I can't wear this ring."

Leena's eyes widened, _don't tell me we just sacrificed a shopping spot for nothing!_

Turning, Leena carefully scrutinized her friend. "And why on earth not?"

" 'cause I'm not a couple…."

"………………"

Simultaneously, punches were place on top of Nakuru's head.

Leena rolled her eyes, blowing her fist lightly, "Of course you can."

"But---" A glare was all Nakuru needed to shut up.

"These rings can be worn like an engagement ring, only matched sets are for couples, to show they are committed. BUT they don't have to be worn that way. If you are single, then you just have to wear it on the middle finger instead of the ring finger. See? Like mine." Leena explained, holding up her right hand. A golden band glinted on her middle finger.

All her previous depression gone, Nakuru grabbed Leena's hand.

"Wooo, I never knew you had one Leena-chan!"

"Yeah, well. We've already established the fact that you don't notice much…"

Through all this, no one noticed a pair of violet eyes silently watching.

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As the girls chatted, the school drew nearer and nearer. A whole new day of studying was about to begin.

"I heard he turned another girl down yesterday!"

"Eh? Really? That must be a new record, five girls in just two days."

"He is so handsome! No wonder girls, and guys confess to him on a daily basis."

Absent minded, Nakuru listened to the conversation around her.

"He's only a year older too, isn't that amazing? He practically rules the school."

_Rules the school?_

_Confessions daily?_

"And he's really nice, all the girls said he was such a gentleman when turning them down."

_Gentleman?_

"Well, he's still a heartbreaker."

_Who is this guy?_

Before she realized it, the words were out of her mouth.

"It's not his fault that people keep on confessing to him and he keeps on refusing, it's not like he could say yes to all of them."

Stares turned her way, surprised half at the fact she had defended a random guy who, knowing Nakuru, is complete unknown to her, half at the fact that she had actually been listening. Blushing slightly, Nakuru grinned and shrugged. Who knows what she was thinking. However, she started regretting her words immediately.

"It's always nice to hear a lovely girl coming to my defence." A husky whisper reached her ear, warm breath teasing Nakuru's sensitive earlobe.

"EEEEEEEKKK!!!!!" Shrieking, Nakuru jumped away from the source of the voice, attempting to turn as she moved.

But, being as ungraceful as she is, she fell.

On her butt.

On the ground.

"Oww, oww!" Nakuru winced as she rubbed her behind gingerly, _this is gonna leave a bruise_. Temporarily distracted, she didn't notice the person coming closer to her. When she finally raised her head again, she froze, like a deer caught in the headlight. Right in front of her, was the most beautiful person she has ever met. Violet-grey. Silver. Milky white. Pale pink. Nakuru has never thought that these colours would look so… perfect… together.

"Yue-sama!!!!!!!!!!"

The spell was broken. Nakuru drew her head back quickly, grateful for her friends' interruption. She didn't even realize that she had leaned in ever so slightly towards him. She watched as her friends fussed over the appearance of the so called "heartbreaker". _Well, I could see why he was called that……_ Realizing where her thoughts are going, Nakuru blushed furiously. She will not think such things about him. She barely knows the guy for god sakes. Thankfully her friends gave her a chance to recover from the shock, and untangle herself from the ground. And hopefully, hide her blush.

Dusting her uniform off, Nakuru fought the urge to look over at the long silver-haired boy. She must not. It's not he'd pay attention to her anyways. It's hopeless to begin with. A disappointment waiting to happen. But fate wasn't on her side that day. A pair of pristine, perfectly shined shoes entered her vision.

"I believe this is yours?" That deep husky voice again.

Immediately, Nakuru's cheeks started heating up once more. It was her ring. She was admiring it in her hand. Determined not to look at the beautiful boy, she grabbed the ring mumbling a hurried apology and dashed towards the school. Leaving others behind in a trail of dust.

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"And the equation goes like so… …"

Nakuru sighed for what seemed like the hundredths time, _math is so boring_, and consequently her worst subject. There is no way she's going to get any of this anyways. Instead her thoughts turned to a few days ago. Yue-san. A blush was threatening to emerge again at the mere thought of his name. With a groan, Nakuru buried her head in her arms, this is hopeless.

"Ahem! Akizuki-san, do you have something to say?"

_Oh, crap._

"Um, I have a headache?" Nakuru grinned sheepishly. Quiet snorts could be heard through out the classroom.

The teacher rubbed his forehead, how he longed to throw her out of the classroom. Permanently.

"Go and take break outside then, Akizuki-san."

Overjoyed, Nakuru jumped up.

"HAIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SEN--"

"Just go!!"

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_Sensei is so mean sometimes,_ Nakuru pouted as she wandered down the hall. She was just trying to thank him.

_Well, at least I get some free time._ Grinning now, Nakuru looked around._ All alone._ Spreading her arms, a gleeful look spred across her features. She started to spin. Moving her arms in waves and her body, Nakuru began to dance. Fully absorbed in her own joy of dancing, she was oblivious to everything around her. Her now flaming hair under the sunlight trails her petite form with every movement, twisting around her body.

Filled with happiness, she prepared for another spin. She stepped forward once again, turning as she went. As she finished the second turn, for a second, she opened her eyes.

Vivid ruby met cool violet.

Before she even had time to react, they connected.

Eyes wide, Nakuru became aware of herself falling.

And falling.

And falling still.

In a state of panic, she reached out. Grabbing anything and everything she could to stabilize herself.

In a haze, Nakuru felt her hand grip cloth, a shirt maybe? And her ring slipping off as she lost her grip.

Thud.

Ching.

Slowly Nakuru regained her surroundings, it's the second time this week she's falling on her bum. _Now it's definitely going to be bruised._ Eventually, she realized she could barely breath. Mainly due to the full size human on top of her chest. And with what little air she got, a strong scent filled her nose also. _Interesting, I've never smelt this before…definitely male though,_ Nakuru thought distractedly. But before she could think more, the weight disappeared.

"Get up!"

Blink.

_Eh?_

"Are you deaf?"

_Eh?_

No apologies, no inquiries of my health…… 

Nakuru looked up. Yue stood there before her, long silver tresses spilling over his shoulders, his bangs in disarray from the fall. The eyes. The hair. Yep, that's him.

_But why is he so ……rude._

"I'm fine." Came Nakuru's answer, albeit curtly. But hey, it's not like he's being very polite either.

A sneer. Nakuru's vein popped,_ how dare he sneer at me! He's the one who almost suffocated me in first place!_

"I didn't ask." Oh, she is getting angry now. "Well at least, you don't seem deaf. You must be stupid then." Nakuru's eyes widened, is this really the same Yue-san she met the other day? The polite, kind one?

Suddenly, his face didn't seem so appealing anymore. Well, it was still an appealing punch bag. Nakuru stood up to her full height and took a step towards Yue.

"Who are you calling stupid!" Okay, so she's not exactly the best at insults.

"Humphf!" And a second later, he was walking away.

_What the hell!!!_ Nakuru thought angrily, _what happened to the gentleman? _

"_You must be stupid then."_

"Damn him!!!" A shrill scream was heard throughout the school.

Nakuru grumbled curse after curse as she searched the floor for her fallen ring. Spotting it sitting near the window, Nakuru hurried to check if it was ok. Luckily, the ring was in pristine shape, looking even shinier than before.

_Funny._

The noises outside quickly diverted her attention away from the ring.

……

_The birds are chirping. The sun is shining._

_I HATE perfect days._

However, Nakuru froze as she arrived at one thought.

…… Is he PMSing? 


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Refer to previous chapter. You lazy people.

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Pissed.

Angry.

Furious.

Out of her mind.

There are about a dozen more words that could describe the person-sized bundle of pure rage, other wise known as Nakuru Akizuki, currently situated in front her desk. Even the sight of a carefully prepared lunch couldn't lift her mood. Grabbing her fork, way too tightly for comfort, Nakuru eyed the lunch almost murderously. Eying Nakuru with an equal intensity was Rinku, or more specifically, eying the fork in Nakuru's hand. Rinku's thoughts momentarily drifted to ways in which a fork could be used as a weapon as she watched the fork stab into a piece of meat.

Gulping nervously, Ringu spoke, breaking the silence. "Um, Nakuru-chan, wha-what's wrong?" She flinched slightly as Nakuru's gaze focused on her face, while desperately trying to keep the smile on her face.

The auburn haired girl merely stared for a moment, before letting out a heavy sigh. Setting down her fork, Nakuru began telling her friend what happened earlier that day. Unsurprisingly, the other girl started defending Yue.

"I'm sure he was just in a sour mood," Ringu said, patting her friend's hand in reassurance. Nakuru rolled her eyes. _I knew it, absolutely pointless._

Pushing a piece of hair out of her face, Nakuru tried again to get her point across. "See the thing is, I don't think it's just because of a sudden mood swing. There's no way someone could change that much in such a short time."

Ringu frowned, "But he is such a kind person……"

"See, that's the thing!" Nakuru gestured wildly, frustrated. "If that was true, then who was the person I met this morning?" Ringu's frown deepened. She really doesn't understand why her best friend is so upset, for Nakuru was never one for getting riled up over such a small thing. Watching the girl's flushed face closely, Ringu mused. Maybe this Yue-sama meant more to Nakuru than she had previously thought. However, a sudden commotion at the door drew her out of her thoughts. Turning slightly to get a better look, Ringu smiled, speak of the devil.

Nakuru went on and on with her jumbled logic, unaware of the increase in noise level in the room. Until……

"Akizuki." Freezing in the middle of making up yet another insult, Nakuru turned towards the voice. She knew even before she saw him, his silky smooth voice was almost impossible to mistake.

And just as she predicted, standing elegantly in the doorframe was none other than Yue. Their eyes connected for the second time that day, ruby with violet. This time, Nakuru took the time to study his eyes closely, buying time for herself to recover from the shock. Yue's eyes, Nakuru found, were very expressive compared to his closed face. _I guess the saying "eyes are windows to the soul" wasn't complete gibberish after all._ Despite this new discovery, it did not help Nakuru to figure out why a senior like him would be here – in a junior classroom.

And she didn't have to wait long for the answer.

"Come outside with me." This time his voice was much softer, none of that harsh tone from earlier today. Though he is still without his trademark gentleman smile, Nakuru noted as she walked to the door. _Maybe he came to apologize……_

The moment the doors closed behind them. Yue's face became even stonier. His eyes became shielded, as if a layer of ice slid over the violet. _Or maybe not…_

The silence between them stretched indefinitely, neither wanted or knew how to begin. Instead, they just took this rare chance to quietly study each other. Neither realized that they were leaned forward ever so slowly, or how close their faces were. Nakuru's breath became shallower and quicker. She didn't know what she was expecting, but she swore she saw a flicker of nervousness flash through those violet eyes. _Oh? Well that's new._

Yue didn't let her dwell on her observation for more than a second, before he spoke. "Give me your ring."

Nakuru looked stupidly at the silver haired boy, even more confused than before. Sighing in impatience, Yue roughly grabbed her right hand and pulled. Yelping in pain, Nakuru glared at the boy, and then down at his invading hand. Deciding that this was what Yue wanted to show her, she stared at her right hand.

A moment passed.

Blink.

"What?"

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Yue pulled on her hand again, as if to emphasize his point. "Your ring, moron!"

At the insult, Nakuru'e eyes flashed, reaching her boiling point in seconds. "Hey! Who are you calling a moron!" Huffing, Nakuru pulled her hand back and crossed her arms, turning away in anger.

Yue sighed. "So typical, picking up only on the insult and missing my point completely." Seeing no reaction, Yue forced himself to explain further. "Your ring, it feels different." It wasn't a question. Curious at his confidence, Nakuru cautiously looked down at her silver ring.

A slither of a waning moon, two vines. It doesn't look any different… Hmm, but the jerk is right. It does feel weird. Why? 

Twisting her ring slightly, Nakuru's eyes brightened in realization.

"It's---"

"Too big." Yue interrupted, his voice underlined with contempt. "Took you long enough." Nakuru bit hard on her lips in an attempt to restrain herself from hitting his face right there, right now, unwilling to give him another reason to insult her. Instead, she chose another deadly glare.

"And?"

Feeling incredulous, Yue almost dropped his stony façade. Almost. "That means it's not your ring."

A pause.

Nakuru flushed, how could she not have thought of that? Her old ring was a perfect fit! However embarrassed she was, she wasn't about to give up just yet.

"And it can't just be that I lost some weight?"

This time, Yue's façade did slip, for a single second, his lips twitched in amusement. This girl was much more amusing than he had ever imagined, Yue thought. What he didn't know was that she was observant too. That single twitch of the lips did not escape Nakuru's attention, regardless of her state embarrassment. Surprised at the show of emotion, Nakuru forgot about her ring completely. _So he's not such a cold jerk after all._ However, the mask came back on just as quickly as it disappeared.

Recovering from his slip, Yue put on as much of sneer as he could manage. "On your finger? And in half a day no less?" Feeling that the conversation had gone on long enough, Yue grabbed Nakuru's right hand and pulled the ring off in one smooth motion. Before she could protest, he pulled out another ring from his chest pocket. Confused, Nakuru looked at the two rings in Yue's hands closely. The moon. The vines. The band. The colour. They were identical, except the slight size difference. Nakuru leaned closer to take a better look at the rings, unknowingly closer to the holder as well.

And that's what the class saw when one girl opened the door -- Nakuru inches away from Yue, and Yue holding two MATCHING rings in his hands facing her.

"EEEEK!" The girl screamed, face beet red, believing that she had interrupted an intimate moment between the two and slammed the door closed.

Shrugging as if nothing happened, Nakuru turned her attention back to the rings, unaware of the importance of what just happened. "So if that one's not mine, then whose was it?" Somewhat used to her antics, Yue ignored the urge to be surprised.

"Mine. We took the wrongs ones when you ran into me this morning." _His?_ Ruby eye's widened. _Yue had one of these rings too?_ Then it clicked.

"We have MATCHING rings!?" _Matching rings…are for couples…_Leena's words rang through Nakuru's mind. Her face flushed, as much as she disliked Yue, the idea of a couple…

"Of course, I am aware of the implications." Yue's cold voice sliced through Nakuru's thoughts like a sharp knife. "If you even attempt to start anything --"

Nakuru's head snapped up, furious. _The nerve of him! Accusing me of something like that. _ "Whom do you take me for!" Forgetting that she was in a public place, Nakuru grabbed the front of Yue's pristine shirt, shaking him in anger. "You think I'd do something so low? So PATHETIC?" Really, she was almost going to forgive him too. But this was a low blow. Nakuru may not have many things, some may even call her an airhead, but she had pride.

I knew it, he was a disappointment from the start. I shouldn't have even given him a chance.

"Don't worry about the rumours. I'll be sure to never show my face in front you again." Smiling bitterly, Nakuru turned and walked back into the classroom, slamming the door behind her.

Yue stood still in the hallway, matching rings still in his hands. Not even a single flinch when the door was slammed in his face. Slowly, he started walking away. As steady as ever, as smooth as ever.

A single tremor in his hand was all.

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Author's note: I would really like some more reviews, since I really can't make it better without you guys' suggestions. And trust me, I know how much I suck.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: No, really, I have nothing to do with this.

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Whispers.

Everywhere.

In front, beside, behind.

All around.

Whispers.

Nakuru sighed heavily for what seemed like the thousandth time today. Dark lids slid over ruby orbs, Nakuru rubbed her eyes tiredly. It began ever since the moment Nakuru stepped through the school gate: whispers of rumours; groups of girls pointing and glaring in her direction; cluster of guys staring at her like some sort of exotic animal. Ok, so she'll admit, she wasn't really all that upset at first. It's nice to be the centre of attention once in a while, or even twice in a while. But her opinion changed, fast.

_I wonder if it's after the girl tried to trip me or maybe it's after a rock was thrown at me,_ Nakuru mused dryly, speeding up her trip across the yard. "Akizuki-san!" Ok, now it's an all out run. There is no way she's going to wait to hear the end of that sentence. "Akizuki-san, wait!" Nakuru considered yelling back, but decided to save the air for running. She should really start exercising more. Finally, the yelling stopped when Nakuru made it to the doors of the building. Slamming shut the heavy metal door with a loud "clang", Nakuru leaned back against the cold surface. This is bordering ridiculous. _I swear, it's like everyone is watching my every move,_ Nakuru shuddered, this must be what it feels like to be stalked……by about two hundred people.

Taking a deep breath, the auburn haired girl steeled herself for what's to come, and began up the stairs to her classroom.

"How dare she do this!"

"She planned this all out, just to gain fame for herself."

"I heard she turned him down!"

"No way, I heard she forced them on him."

Nakuru sighed again, _for the thousandth and one times. _It seems that over night, the news about the two, _completely unintentional,_ she silently added, matching rings have spread across the whole school. Two matching ring belonging to none other than Nakuru and Yue. _Damn him, it's all because of his stupid popularity,_ Nakuru scowled darkly. But she's got to hand it to them – they sure are an imaginative lot. There must at least four different rumours going around at the same time explaining the story of the two rings. Oh, she's heard them all, the entirely female population made sure of that.

Giving a group of finger-pointing girls the evil eye, Nakuru returned to her thoughts. _Didn't anyone teach them that pointing at others is impolite?_

The very first one she heard was somewhat to be expected, given the situation. But been as naïve as she is, Nakuru was surprised. One particular girl announced, rather loudly when Nakuru walked through the gates, that Nakuru had cold heartedly refused Yue-_sama_'s confession. According to her, Yue had bravely confessed his feelings with the rings. _Laying his heart on the ground, as she put it._ Yet the evil villain Nakuru had laughed at his words and threw the rings back at him, apparently gave him an awful cut on the forehead. Nakuru rolled her eyes involuntarily; she has no idea where THAT came from.

Of course, the girl froze when she spotted Nakuru, blushing and stuttering. However, the rest wasn't as polite or nice.

The second rumour claimed that Nakuru was trying to win Yue over, confessing to him -which, Nakuru thought, was ridiculous - using the rings as a way of forcing herself on him.

_As if._

And then there was the most ludicrous one of all. Nakuru overheard the rumour just as she entered the building, from a couple of seniors. It seems that quite a bit of students believe that Nakuru had staged the whole thing to gain attention, using Yue's popularity as a stop ladder. As expected, Nakuru stepped in. She was the topic of their conversation after all. And also as expected, the senior girls returned the favour.

_Quite harshly, _Nakuru whined inwardly as she fingered the light bruises on her arm. It was an unearthly colour of greenish purple, she observed, definitely not pretty. _I never thought they would be that strong,_ Nakuru thought, stilled focused on her arm. As a result, she never saw what came next.

With a dull thud, her backpack was knock to the ground. Nakuru stood there, surprised, her hand still grasping the strap that was no longer there. _What the…_

"Oh my, what a mess." Auburn hair whipped around wildly as Nakuru turned towards the voice, forming a cascade of movement all around her. Facing her was an unfamiliar face. _Pretty, _Nakuru thought somewhat distractedly, studying the person who had knocked her backpack onto the ground. She may not be the most observant person, but she knows a memorable face when she sees one.

The unknown girl had beautiful black hair, all the way down her back, almost reaching her calf. Probably the most striking feature of all._ I wish I could grow my hair that long._ Flipping her hair to its full potential, the girl spoke for a second time.

"So it's true, then, you are slow aren't you." Nakuru blinked, confused. _What is she trying to say?_ "You couldn't have possibly come up with the plan to frame Yue-sama." _What?_ " Then it means you were trying to force him to accept the rings weren't you?" Gasps, Nakuru noted, all around them. It seems they have gathered quite an audience.

Ruby met coal black, and held on in defiance. Nakuru wasn't about to give up. Still holding the other's gaze, Nakuru bent down and picked up her bag. Slowly, she straightened, even taking the time to dust the canvas material. Then suddenly, Nakuru ginned widely, flashing her white teeth, "You must be imagining things."

Not waiting around for a reaction, Nakuru slipped into her classroom.

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"And if we insert this word to replace the previous……."

Nakuru tuned out sensei's monotone instructions as she stared out at the giant sakura tree outside the widow. She watched as leaves fell into the wind, one by one.

_Why did it have to be him? If wasn't for him ……if he wasn't so popular……_Her daze was interrupted when a paper ball landed on the desk in front of her. For a second, Nakuru only stared at the paper, amazed at its mere existence. Then struck by the realization that this had to have been thrown by someone, she looked up, hoping to see whom it came from. Her head swerved as she scanned the class. _Funny, it doesn't look like it came from anyone……_

Shrugging the thought off, Nakuru opened the piece of paper carefully, and as quietly as possible. There was only one sentence written on the paper, in a neat, loopy handwriting.

_I want to apologize, meet me at the door at lunch. I'll even throw in some chocolates. _

Ruby eyes lit up immediately on the word chocolate. _Maybe today won't be so bad after all,_ Nakuru thought gleefully as she read the note again, smiling. _I knew it, they can't be all bad._

Folding the note back up, she looked around again, hoping to catch the sender's eye. A light haired girl's head shifted suddenly when Nakuru looked her way, pretending to be engrossed in her notebook. Nakuru watched the girl for a few moments, trying to recognize her in some way. Wrinkling her brows slightly, Nakuru gave up when she couldn't place the girl anywhere. Maybe she was just feeling sorry for the person in the centre of all the rumours. Maybe.

"Damn it!" Nakuru cursed in frustration as she ducked into the girl's washroom for the fourth time that day. Opening a small gap in the door, she peeked out into the hall, waiting for him to pass. Oh yes, HIM, the infamous Yue-sama.

"Why did I have to say I'd never show my face in front of him again!" Nakuru blew a piece of stray hair out of her face, muttering darkly. She didn't recall her and Yue's path crossing this much before, especially considering he's a freaking senior, who shouldn't be using this hallway anyways.

_It's like he's doing this on purpose._

"Oh my god, Yue-sama!" "Your hair looks great today-" "Handsome as usual!" Nakuru rolled her eyes, don't they get tired of say that every single day? Pushing the opening wider, she watched as the boy walked down the hall. The exasperation turned into anger as she noted the smile Yue gave to everyone as he passed him or her by. _Yeah, everyone by me,_ Nakuru scowled, recalling how he treated her the last time they met. However, the next sentence surprised everyone, especially Nakuru.

"Has anyone of you seen Akizuki-san?" Jaw hanging wide open, Nakuru mirrored everyone else's look. _What the hell?_

Unbelieving of her own ears, Nakuru leaned further into the door, hoping for a closer look. And further. And further. Until… …

"Ahhhhhhhh!"

Thump.

She fell right into the hall, in an ungraceful heap of hair, clothing and books. Dreading the looks one everyone's faces, Nakuru kept still, frozen on the floor. Hoping for a slim chance, any chance at all, that everyone was too focused on Yue to notice her.

"Never mind, I see she's right here." Nakuru grimaced, well, she tried. Spitting a lock of maroon hair out of her mouth, she pulled herself up slowly on her knees. Taking a deep breath, Nakuru swallowed and finally looked up. The moment ruby met violet, the world melted away. The snickers, glares all disappeared into the background. All Nakuru could focus on was the boy in front of her.

"Ahem." Of course, these moments never last long. Snapped out of her daze, Nakuru dropped her gaze and quickly got up, gathering her things off of the floor. When she looked up again, the amusement in Yue's eyes was evident.

"What do you want?" Nakuru was determined to appear unaffected, despite the blush creeping up her face. Glaring at the silver-haired boy as best as she could, Nakuru hoped that he would be at least a bit intimidated.

Raising a single delicate eyebrow, Yue answered calmly, completely ignoring her glare. "I need to talk to you. I'll meet you at lunch." Nakuru stared. _He seems normal……_

Yue sighed, one would think that he would learn to expect this after all these time. Shaking his head slightly, he gave her one last look and walked away without waiting for a response. Nakuru's gaze trailed after Yue's back, more confused than ever. Then … …

"Akizu-"

"Oh my god, he-"

"You get to personally talk to him!"

"Can I come wi-"

"What's your secrect?"

Groaning inwardly, Nakuru covered her ears, _damn him._

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Rinnnnnnnnnnngggggg.

The class released a sigh of relief, math was torture, especially when they don't understand a thing. Nakuru stood, pushing back her chair with a loud squeak. With a practiced speed, she began to gather her things into her bag. She's definitely not leaving her stuff in the classroom, who knows what jealous girls could think up. As she was putting the last notebook into her bag a tiny slip of paper fell onto the desk. It was the note she received this morning from that mysterious girl. Nakuru paused, she had completely forgot about the note and the person who had written it.

_It said to meet her at lunch._

_But,_ she frowned,_ why did it have to be at lunch? The same time as Yue, not that I care……_

"Wooo, what's that? Nakuru-chan?" Nakuru looked up to meet the curious face of her friend.

"Oh, Rinku-chan." Wordlessly, Nakuru showed her the note. Rinku's eyes widened as she read the note in her hand.

"Apologize? For what? What happened?" Rinku questioned, concern clearly written across her face. Nakuru laughed, it's just like her friend, such a worry-tart.

"Don't worry, it's nothing." The auburn haired girl paused when someone at the door waved, the girl who was watching her during class. "Ok, I have to go. Be right back."

Rinku watched as Nakuru bounced across the room, towards the door. She wanted the call out and stop her, but … … Nakuru was so sure that it was nothing. Ringu narrowed her eyes as she spotted the girl who had waved to her friend - a girl in their class, she believed. _I have a bad feeling about this,_ Rinku thought worriedly, looking back down at the note again. _A real bad feeling._

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Tap. Tap. Tap.

The clicking of heels was the only sound echoing down the hall. No words were spoken, not even a whisper. Nakuru shifted uncomfortably. She hates silences.

"So um… … the note was from you?" _Oh, nice. Just the way to start a conversation._

The girl didn't respond, she just kept on walking, reaching the stairs now. Nakuru pouted, _at lease answer me!_ Irritated, she reached out and grabbed the girl's arm, stepping in front to block her movements.

"Wait!" To her great surprise, the girl twisted out of Nakuru's grip and struck her, hard. With a yelp, Nakuru fell backwards from the force and lost her footing. Then as the power of gravity reached her, with a sickening drop of the stomach she fell down the stairs. Her back connected painfully with the ridges of the stairs, each and every one digging deep into her bones. Frantically, Nakuru tried to grab something to stop herself. Luckily her fingers brushed against the cold railing, and using all the strength she had, she grabbed on. Nakuru stopped abruptly, her shoulder nearly tearing off at the weight of her body, fingers straining to maintain the grip.

"Ow… …" Feeling sore all over her body, Nakuru pushed herself up on her hands. But before she could get up completely, she was slammed back down onto the stairs, knocking the wind out of her. Gasping for breath, Nakuru heard a voice coming from somewhere above her.

"Well, well. So you came." _That voice……_Nakuru struggled to remember where she had heard that voice before, _it's ……this morning……_

Her eyes widened. It was her then.

"Ah, you remember. I'm flattered." Dark dresses entered Nakuru's vision, dark dresses surrounding a beautiful face.

"Yo- you … …" _So she planned all of this, the note, the apology, the timing. Everything._

"Why … …" Darkness is entering Nakuru's vision for real now. She is not far from fainting from the lack of oxygen.

"Why you ask, hmmm." The girl pulled on Nakuru's hair, pulling her head back at an awkward angel, not to mention painful. Staring at her tormentor in the eye, Nakuru saw nothing but anger. "Because you little nobody, stole MY Yue-sama! You tried to take him for yourself! For all I know, you even planned everything so he'll take you just to get rid of the rumours! How dare you, don't you realize … …"

Nakuru didn't hear the rest, she fainted.

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The first thing she saw when she woke up was darkness. For a disorienting moment, Nakuru thought her eyes were still closed. Then as she blinked again and again, she realized that she was enshrouded by darkness. Everywhere she turned, everywhere she looked, it was pitch black.

Numbly, Nakuru stood up, albeit shakily. Feeling her way along the walls, she hoped to find some kind of exit. A door, a window, anything. However, within minutes it was clear. There was no way out, she was trapped. It seems Nakuru was placed in a small room, an enclosed room of some sort. Based on what she felt, it was most likely a small wooden shed. _An very old shed, based on that rotten, damp smell._ With a sudden feel of revelation, she realized where she was – an old tool shed at the back of the school, the one that have been abandoned for as long as anyone could remember. Almost simultaneously, she also realized that it's going to be nearly impossible for anyone to come and find her, since no one ever comes here because its near the garbage dump.

However, Nakuru wasn't about to give her capturers the satisfaction of seeing her afraid.

"Well, at least I can catch some sleep now."

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Rinku looked around for the third time. No flashes of maroon hair, no shimmers of red ruby. No Nakuru. Lunch was over now, and they were already half way into the first period. Yet still no Nakuru. Rinku wasn't just nervous, now she was seriously worried. She knew her friend wasn't the best student in the world, but Nakuru wouldn't skip class with no reason. And that note. The brunette gripped her pen nervously as she thought of the note Nakuru had shown her before she left.

_I want to apologize_, it had said. No matter how she thought about it, the note seemed suspicious. It even mentioned chocolate, which was easily Nakuru's favourite thing in the world. Rinku stared at her notebook unseeingly, why had it mentioned that? It almost seemed like a lure to make sure Nakuru would go. Rinku sighed, and of course in typical Nakuru fashion, it would most definitely work.

"Really?"

"The one with the matching rings?"

"The very one. I heard she planned the whole thing……"

Rinku tuned the rest of the whispered conversation out, unwilling to listen to any more of those idiotic rumours. Of course she had only learned of these during lunch, a surprise to many of her classmates. She had blushed, Rinku will admit, she's not the type for gossips. But it was then, she realized what the note could've been and that only add to her worries.

"Psst. Did you hear? Akizuki-san was asked to eat lunch with Yue-sama today!"

Suddenly, attentions gathered. Rinku's eyes lit up, _well, well._

"I know, I was there!"

"I'm so jealous… …"

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Yue was pissed.

No, beyond pissed. But of course the only sign of that was the slightest thinning of his lips.

Today has not been his day. First there were the rumours, those ridiculous gossips. Yue's eyebrow twitched. He had tried to avoid the whole mess, and admittedly, save that annoying girl from all this. But evidently, that didn't work. Looking at the blackboard, pale hands moved to copy the next few sentences in a small, neat writing. With an air of finality Yue laid down his pen, leaning back against the chair.

Then there was lunch. Yue's eyes narrowed the tiniest fraction as he recalled what happened earlier. Or rather, what didn't happen. That girl didn't show up, as in, stood him up, left him there. His eye's narrowed further, _I thought she was a bit slow, but I didn't think she was stupid enough to have misunderstood me._ Of course, being the gentleman that he was, he waited the better half of lunch waiting for her. Catching a girl's eye, Yue smiled kindly. The girl immediately blushed and turned away, only to sneak glances at him later.

At least she doesn't act like a blushing idiot around me…… 

Rinnng.

Still pissed, Yue gathered his things and began walking to the door, hoping to walk his anger off before anyone realized. However, he didn't get very far. Instead of his usual girl fanclub, Yue found himself stopped by a tiny girl almost two heads shorter.

Amused, the silver-haired boy paused, "May I help you?" Yue smiled his best disarming smile and was shocked when the small girl glared right back at him with a look that could've killed.

"Cut the crap." A silver eyebrow went up, and the smiled was dropped. Yue continued to study the brunette in front of him,_ I have seen her somewhere……ah, she's a friend of that annoyance, wasn't she?_ "You met with Nakuru-chan at lunch today." It wasn't a question.

Gritting his teeth, Yue answered the accusation coldly. "No."

"No?" A flash of fear entered the girl's eyes. He frowned, _did something happen?_ By now, it seemed, the girl's hostile appearance was replace by one of worry.

"Bu-but… then… s-sh-" Now he was sure something had happened. Gripping the girl's shoulder to steady her, Yue sat her down on the nearest chair before she fainted. _Is this why she wasn't there? What happened to her? Is she alright? She's better-_

"I thought she'd be with you." Yue refocused on the girl in front her. "I- I thought you met with her, and maybe got into another argument…" _What is she talking about?_

Deciding this has gone on long enough, he shook her shoulders roughly, ceasing her rambling at once. "What are you saying?" Yue continued to watch the girl, carefully noting her reactions in case she has a breakdown. He was surprised once again,_ this has got to stop,_ when tears started to gather in her eyes.

"Na-akuru's missing!"

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"And the sun goes down…" A shaky voice filled the silence inside the tiny little shed. It's been an hour or something like since Nakuru was trapped in darkness; she really hadn't had the energy to count the time.

"And the birds go home…" Nakuru wrapped her arms around herself, hoping to bring some kind of comfort to this cold, abandoned place. The hopeful glimmer had long since disappeared in her eyes, the ruby orbs now are staring blankly out at absolutely nothing. With every part of her body shaking, Nakuru fought to keep on singing, to keep making some kind of noise, any noise.

Darkness. Darkness as far as she could see, everywhere, all around her. "Mommy?" A tentative voice echoed in the empty space. "Daddy?" A five year-old girl called out, head swerving dangerously in all direction, as if hoping to catch a glimpse of her parents somehow. Realizing that there would be no answer, the girl started sobbing quietly. Shoulders shaking, she wrapped a pair of thin arms around herself, forming a human tight sphere. Silence. For as long as she could hear. Just silence, nothing else. Even her own breathing could no longer be heard. At times, the young girl thought she was deaf and somehow people were calling out to her, looking for her but she just couldn't hear it.

_Darkness……as far as she could see…_

Nakuru let out a dry sob, burying her head in her arms, trying to quiet the memories in her head. She could feel the old fear slowly seizing her heart, consuming her insides. _No, it's not the same. No, it's not like that anymore. _ Wrapping her arms around herself tighter, she drew in a shaky breath. _Calm down … …_

"An-and the moon come up…"

A flicker of light shined through a crack in the boarded window. The small girl turned wildly towards the source. All that could be seen is a sliver of a pale face and a pair of ruby eyes filled with fear, before the light dissipated. A loud croak of disappointment was all that was left…… 

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"What?"

Shocked looks were sent his way as Yue yelled in dismay, yes, yelled. Rinku looked on, surprised and somewhat amazed that the boy in front her was even capable of such emotions. Realizing how he had reacted, Yue immediately recollected himself. Running a hand through his hair, he sat back down.

"What do you mean?"

Rinku blink, _great, now I feel like Nakuru._ She opened her mouth to reply only to closed it a second later when it hit her. Flipping her pockets inside out, Rinku desperately searched for the note. Yue watched with a slight frown as the girl went through her pockets like crazy, then with confusion as a piece of paper was thrust into his face.

Taking the note, Yue gave Rinku once last look before he shifted his gaze down to his hand. Rinku watched on nervously, anticipating the worst. But, that never happened. His face remained stony, frozen, as if preserved in ice.

Jerking back her body backwards was all that saved Rinku from colliding with Yue when he suddenly rose from his seat. Wordlessly, Yue walked towards the door, long silver hair swishing behind his back.

He will not forgive whoever did this.

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Numbness was all Nakuru could feel, above the cold and dampness. Fear filled every one of her bones, down to her very core. Every movement, every breath, every heartbeat hurt. The pair of ruby eyes that had once held the centre of attention was reduced to a mere dull glow. No matter how much Nakuru sobbed, the tears would not come. _Of course it won't come, I've used it all up years ago …… a lifetime ago……_

Closing her eyes tiredly, Nakuru fell on to her side, ignoring her aching muscles. She could feel her breath hitch in renewed fear when the perspective changed suddenly and struggled to keep herself from going into hyperventilation. She was smart enough to know that once that happens, little will be able to save her. Finally getting her body under control, Nakuru relaxed as much as she could.

I'm ……tired……sleep… 

"_Mommy?"_

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The small, old tool shed bathed in a red glow as the sun began to disappear behind the landscape. A lone figure could be seen walking across the field, approaching the sad looking shed, silky long hairs trailing after. Dying grass crunched as the figure passed through, leaving a clear record of their footsteps. However, that was the only noise that could be heard. The shed and its occupant were completely silently, almost deathly so.

Stopping right before the bolted door leading into the shed, the figure paused, studying the door. The sun dipped lower into the earth, letting darkness engulf more and more of the world. As if drawn out of contemplation by the threat of near sun down, the figure began to move. Slim hands worked on the bolt, long shadowy dresses falling over covered shoulders as the figure leaned forward, covering what little light there was left. With a soft thud, the bolt was flipped open and the heavy wooden door swung inwards, revealing a tiny gap.

Inside, everything was shrouded in absolute darkness, impossible to see. No longer patient, the figure quickly pushed the door all the way open, eagerly shedding a warm evening glow into the interior.

Feeling the warmth of the sun on her face, Nakuru was roughly shaken out of her sleep. For a few seconds, she thought herself dreaming, since as long as her brain could remember, there was only darkness. Until, of course, a pair of strong arms hauled her into a hug. _A bone-crushing hug._ Surrounded by drowsy warmth that could only come from another live person, Nakuru felt sleepy once again, truly sleepy this time.

Hmmm, this smell…… 

Without even opening her eyes, the auburn-haired girl breathed out one last word before she is lost to the world.

"Yue… …"

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Author's Note: Oh my goodness, that chapter sucked the souls right out of me. I was going to cut it short so many times, but sadly that never happened. I was seriously considering putting this into two chapters …….that never happened either.

As for the bit with Nakuru having a bad experience with darkness, just let me say this, it's based off of an idea mentioned in another fanficion, and I sort of borrowed it and put a history behind it. So don't get mad at me, I would tell you which one, but I really can't remember, it's been a loooong time.

You know, I was actually very tempted to change the ending to this:

"Without even opening her eyes, the auburn-haired girl breathed out one last word before she is lost to the world.

'Chocolate… …' "


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Refer to previous chapter, lazy people.

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White.

As far as she could see; to the very edge of her vision. It was everywhere around her, enveloped in a suffocating silence… …

Lids slid over ruby eyes quickly, blinking out the sleepiness from the previous night. _Who knew I could be so dramatic this early in the morning, _Nakuru stared out blankly at the pale ceiling, _they should really change the colour sometimes……was that a spider? _

"Arghhhhhhhhhh!" Frightened nurses glanced at one another, the patient 203 again. Who would've thought a half-sedated teenage girl could be this loud.

Maroon locks flew wildly while Nakuru pounded an innocent pillow. _WHITE pillow._ Groaning, she covered her face with the now completely depleted pillow, effectively cutting off her air supply._ At least this way I won't die from utter boredom. _She has been here for 2 days. 2 days. As in 48 hrs. 2880 minutes. Doing what? Absolutely nothing. Nope, nata, zip. She has been lying on this same, boring, white bed for all this time. Since the all so caring nurses said she was not to be overly exerted during her time here. Which _means_ another day of nothingness for the redheaded girl in room 203.

_Oh the joy. _Nakuru, after rethinking her decision to suffocate herself, removed the pillow from her face. Hugging the fluffy object to her chest, Nakuru turned towards the window, finally calming down a little. Well, a lack of air supply certainly does help.

Exhaling soundly, she began the second stage of her day --- brooding. This room was the first thing Nakuru remembers seeing since … well, since quite a while. Along with its set of doctors, nurses, stupid beeping machines and even the disgustingly bland blinds. Nakuru frowned, for some reason, her mind only remembered as far as that and nothing else. It was like there's a giant space between her accident and the hospital. Completely blank.

According to the doctors, she had suffered only minor physical injuries and a slight concussion from her accident --- a fall from the stairwells. Apparently she had blacked out afterwards, not waking up until a day later. _Well,_ Nakuru pouted,_ so I figured. No one would tell me anything._ Ever since she woke up, she had talked to no one, besides asking the necessities. And no one had visited her either; not when she was awake anyways. Yesterday, when Nakuru woke up from her afternoon nap, there was a package left on her bedside table. Nakuru was surprised, and more so, curious. It didn't seem like something from Rinku, or Leena, or any of her other friends; they would have left a card. In it, was a single stem of daisy, and bars of chocolate.

_Why daisy?_ Nakuru pondered as she shifted to face the other side of the room, for a change of scenery … … or not. _It's so random, and not even my favourite flower. You'd think when giving a gift, the person would think about something like this. _This said flower now sitting in a vase beside her bed—thanks to her all so caring nurse. Flipping a piece of stray hair out of her face, she shifted again, to lie on her back. Blinking up at the ceiling, Nakuru squirmed uncomfortably, half-buried in sheets and blankets. Finally giving up, covers were thrown off as the maroon haired girl jumped up. A soft thud was the only response to her frustration. Sighing again, Nakuru went back to her ponderings. Now sitting by the side table, the last bar of chocolate sat there staring right back at her. _The last one in that package._ Whoever it was, they knew that Nakuru loved the sweet, more so than it would be healthy for a person twice her size.

Speak of which, Nakuru eyed the chocolate with hungrily. She's not really suppose to be eating chocolate … … so the people in white coats say … … The crinkly wrapper, the picture of a half wrapped chocolate on the _wrapper._ _I should sue them for inappropriate tempting,_ Nakuru thought distractedly as her hand slowly crept towardsthe treat. And nearer. Nearer… …

"Nakuru-channnnnnnn!" _Of course I'd never make it._ She eyed the door way wearily. Ruby eyes lit up a second later as two figures entered.

"Rinku-chan! Lena-chan!" Screaming, Nakuru threw herself at her two best friends, enveloping them in a suffocating hug. Eyes bulging from the pressure, the two girls merely laughed and hugged back.

Realising her deathly grip, Nakuru beamed at her friends. "What took you guys so long to visit?" However, without even waiting for an answer, she dragged the two over to sit by her bed.

"… … well?" Lena and Rinku shared a smile; it's just like Nakuru to be so energetic even when she's hospitalized.

Rinku turned her gaze to Nakuru, and spoke first, "Well, we couldn't visit until now cause they thought it would too much for you to handle so soon, so today's the first…" Nakuru blinked,_ what's too much for me to handle?_ And she said just that.

To her surprise, a look of anxiousness flitted across Rinku's face at the question. However, her voice portrayed nothing. "Oh you know, typical hospital procedures." Waving her hands airily, Rinku attempted to change to topic, "So how are you exactly?" Nakuru raised an eyebrow, she hadn't missed the meaningful look passed between her two friends. Turning her body around, Nakuru glanced back and forth, studying each in turn.

_What is going on?_

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Lying back on the bed alone, Nakuru chewed on her lip thoughtfully. Her visitors had just left, leaving her to her own thoughts.

_They looked worried, _Nakuru frowned, fingering the bed sheets. _They look worried that I was so energetic… … why?_ The frown deepened._ What were _they_ expecting? … …_

_And that gift on my table. Rinku said that even they weren't allowed to visit before today, _Her eyes momentarily darkened, mouth grim, _only family members were permitted… …_

… …_so who was it?_

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Knock. Knock.

Ruby eyes jerked open at the loud noise in the silence of her room. Tired, the girl called out wearily, "Come in."

The knob turned slowly and the door opened, revealing a young man.

"_You_!" Nakuru yelled in surprise, throwing the new visitor a poisonous glance.

Yue smiled inwardly, _at least she can still yell._ "Thank you for visiting would've been just as nice." Sitting down on the chair by the bed - _the ONLY chair in the room, _Yue told himself,_ it's not like he's trying to be closer to her,_ - he studied Nakuru closely.

The said patient glared harder as Yue came to sit by her, unbeknownst, pulling the covers tighter around her body. Noticing her unconscious movements, Yue's frowned, the only sign being one little crease appearing between his brows. _She looks scared,_ he thought,_ why is she scared, of me?_

"You don't look good." Nakuru raised an eyebrow, did the ice-pick sound angry just now? _Nahhhh, why would he be angry? Nope, no expression what so ever, definitely an illusion. _

"Thanks, you know just the words to impress a lady." The redhead grinned, showing her teeth. She was doing well.

"I would hardly consider you a lady." Damn, maybe not as well as she thought. Nakuru flushed, eyes flashing wildly. _Why do their conversation always end this way?_

But something made her pause as she opened her mouth to relay the favour. Something being the silver headed boy. Or more specifically, his expression. Nakuru observed with great amusement as Yue's eyes shifted to a downcast position, lips drawn in tight in a straight line. _He almost… …looks sorry…_ She snickered slightly, covering her mouth with her hands, who knew Yue could pull off such a bashful look.

The snicker, though soft, immediately wiped the rare expression off of Yue's face, smoothing it into its usual emotionless mask. Eyes narrowing at Nakuru's obvious amusement at his expense, the temperature around Yue dropped to an extreme low. Nakuru's snickers died in her throat as waves of cold energy wrapped itself around her. Stealing a look at the immobile icicle, she sighed. God he can be scary.

Silence.

Both shifted in their seats, uncomfortable in the sudden lack of words. Yue stared into the distance, the corners of the room, the sheets, anywhere but Nakuru. A reticent person to begin with, one would think he'd welcome a moment of quietness. However, when the moment is shared with HER ... ...

Wringing her hands, Nakuru bit her lower lip nervously, searching for something to say. _This is not helping_, Yue thought as he watched her movements out of the corners of his eyes, gaze involuntarily drawn to her lips. Better to break the silence now before I did something stupid.

"W-... ..."

"Wh-... ..."

Eyebrows curved elegantly upwards.

Nakuru grinned, _I can't believe we're acting like some lovey dovey couple... ... ha, as if! _"What are you doing here anyways?"

"You'll be a great hostess one day." Was the icy come-back. The maroon headed girl fought down a growing growl, opting a smirk instead.

"You are avoiding the question." She pointed out, quite literaly, using her index finger. To her surprise, for like the forth time, _geesh what's with it today, _Yue actually looked away, corners of his mouth turned down. _Is this what he looks like when he's guilty? _Before Nakuru could study the boy further, Yue eyes snapped back up, looking directly into her ruby ones. The intensity of his gaze shocked Nakuru,_ no, it wasn't guilt. _The colours in Yue's eyes seemed to swirl in perpetual motion around the smoky pupil, twisting, weaving around each other. _It was ... ... _For the first time in a long while, she ran of words.

"Shouldn't I be here?" The question was quiet, low pitched. _To hide the roughness of his voice_, Nakuru realized. She frowned, was she suppose to know the reason?

The question died on her tongue. The answer was written all over Yue's face: widened eyes, grim mouth. For one second, both were frozen. One from dread, and the other dismay. Now Nakuru was really nervous. Exactly what had she forgotten that's so important?_ Why is he looking at me like that? _Eyes widened in apprehension, she grabbed on to his arming, clutching it in a death grip.

"What? What is it?" She questioned hurriedly. Nakuru watched as the light in Yue's eyes dimmed, clouding over with... anger? Wait, no. Disappointment?

She leaned in further before her hand was pryed off by Yue, pushing her back on to the bed. Confused, Nakuru remained silent and still, a puppet in his fingers. Yue felt his hands shaking as he pulled away. Clasping them in his lap to hide the tremor, Yue tried to think._ She had forgotten, everything._ He stole a look at her face, _such open features. She's too trusting, which is why she ended up here in the first place,_ Yue's grip tightened.

_Flash back_

_Yue's throat seized as he saw her. Half lying on the ground, limbs curled in a tight ball, hair fanning around her figure. She was shaking, not shivering, but physically convulsing. In a split second, he was there, lifting her into his long arms. Her hands were covering her face, Yue didn't know if she was awake or not. As subtly as possible, he shook her shoulders. "Akizuki." Nakuru flinched at her name, and reluctantly unvealed her face. Shocked was an understatement when the older boy saw her face. Tear tracks streaming down her face, mixed with dirt, framing a pair of lifeless ruby eyes ... ..._

Yue looked over at Nakuru instinctively at the member, taking in her confused, nervous form on the bed. To both person's surprise, a pale hand reached out to comb a strand of maroon hair behind Nakuru's ear. Before she even had time to feel surprised, she found her vision suddenly filled with Yue's sharp features.

"It's better if you don't." Nakuru froze as a shiver went down the whole length of her body at the husky whisper. He was close, _wayyyy too close._ All thoughts of what was forgotten was, forgetten. Out the window. The faintest touch of his warm breath was upon her ear. His violet eyes were focused intently on her ruby ones- unwavering, powerful, overwhelming… … stunning. _His eyes is actually grey, _Nakuru noted somewhere faraway in her mind, _with violet specks… …_And that was the last thought she had, the rest swallowed along with her logic by a tousled violet-grey hue.

Yue realized his mistake as soon as Nakuru froze, jaw wide open in surprise. He had gone too far, now there was no way out. His body had taken a will of its own, unwilling and unable to pull away. Putting one hand on top of the sheets, Yue leaned in even further, loosing the badly fought battle. Now they were close enough to feel each other's breath on their faces, tickling their lips. Violet eyes flickered downwards quickly. Nakuru knew what he was thinking, though no idea why they were even in this situation, and unconsciously licked her lips. She watched as long, silky strands of silver hair brushed against her shoulder, interweaving with hers for the shortest of moments. Pale nose bumped into a blushing one, but the gaze never broke – ruby and violet both unrelenting.

Swallowing, Nakuru's eyes fluttered as … …

She blinked, the air in front of her suddenly became vacant. She remained stunned for a full second, until she noticed something else – Yue's head on her shoulder, nestled between the hollow where her neck and collarbone meets.

_WHAT THE HELL? What do I do ? What do I do? What do I DO?_ Nakuru screamed in her head as she fought to remain still, _He's not dead is he? Is he dead? OH MY GOD he's dead!!!!!!!!!!_

Luckily, before she started hyperventilating, the weight was removed. Yue stood up abruptly, distancing himself from the bed, from her. Nakuru, stone still, watched as Yue pushed away the chair blindly, focusing on anywhere but her.

Finally deciding on a point somewhere above her head, leaning heavily on the bed-side table, he spoke, "I have wasted enough time here." His voice was cold, level, calm. _Just like when I first bumped into him._

With equal calm and coldness, he reached the door with long, powerful strides. And in an array of silver strands, Yue was gone.

Confused beyond belief, Nakuru shook her head slightly to clear her thoughts. _First he comes in insulting me, then that, then... ... then... this. But in situations like these, there always ……_

"DAMN YOU! MY CHOCOLATE BAR!"

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Roughly pushing his way through the crowd of nurses, patients, all forms of politeness gone, Yue was unnerved. His could still feel her breath on his face, her body near his, her eyes on him… …

"DAMN YOU! MY CHOCOLATE BAR!"

Shocked by the sudden, high pitch scream, everyone in the lobby froze. Even the months old babies cease their wailing. A slow smile spread across pale lips. Yue resumed walking, this time, with all the manners and grace in the world.

A moment later, the bustling lobby also returned to its original state. The only acknowledgement of the rare moment of silence was occasional whispers and murmurs of nurses drifting across the hall.

"Do you think they'd notice if we just throw her out during the night?"

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Author's note: Oh, I didn't get to put all the parts I wanted to in this chapter… … damn. Edit nevermind, I fixed it. :)


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Refer to the previous chapter, lazy bums!

Author's note: Sorry this took so long! I just kinda drifted off for a while… …

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_Well, this's not so bad._

Nakuru thought as stood in front of the school gates. She had just been released from hospital earlier that morning, and being bored to the extreme for the past four days, she had decided to go to school as soon as she can. It all seemed like a good plan in her head, but now when she's actually here…

She cringed slightly as she thought of what she might encounter inside. _The rumours, the gossips …_Nakuru sighed. Yes, that, she had not thought of. Rubbing her left temple slightly, _I wonder if I should run for it now while I have the chance…_

_No._

Her grip tightened. No. Akizuki Nakuru will not just chicken out like this. Ruby eyes narrowed in determination. She will make it to the cafeteria, and get that bar of chocolate!

And so, she took a firm step towards the gate, head held high … …

"AHHHHH!" Thud. "Damn you, you immobile rock!"

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Tap. Tap. Tap.

Frown.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Sigh.

THUD.

Finally snapping out of his daze, Yue looked over towards where the noise came from. It came from outside, just by the gates. _Strange, just a cloud of dust. _Blinking, he turned his gaze back into the classroom. Looking over the board, pale hand moves to add a few more lines of notes. Satisfied with his pretence of paying attention, Yue retreated back into his own thoughts. This week has been … … bothersome to say the least… … especially… especially since THAT incident.

_Damnit._

He has been trying to avoid thinking about exactly that for the last two days. It was for exactly that reason that he has been extra studious, and helpful for the past two days. Assisting different clubs, doing extra homework, taking on classroom duties. Anything, to keep his mind off of that … that…

_Flushed cheeks, lidded ruby eyes._

_Quickened breath._

_Lips …parted…_

_DAMNIT!_

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"… And if you substitute x for this value here…"

Nakuru exhaled loudly, this is it. _This is the last chance to run for it._ Shaking slightly, she reached for the doorknob._ Here I go._

Slamming the door open in one smooth motion, she jumped right in.

"SENSEIIIII! I'm back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Nakuru screamed enthusiastically, just short of jumping on the said sensei for a bear hug. Grinning widely, she spun on her heels to face the class, inwardly waiting for the worst. _Here comes the glares, stares, whispers. Oh boy._

"Nakuru-chan!"

"Oh my god, you're ba-"

"Are you alright?"

"You poor thing …"

Gaping, Nakuru stared. Yes, stared, as her classmates rushed welcome her back with all the enthusiasm of the world. And she continued to stare in stunned silence as she was bombarded with hugs, right where she was standing. In front the classroom. In the middle of a lesson.

_Um, did I miss something?_

It turns out, as learned almost an hour later, that this was all thank to that egotistical bastard. Yep, him. That silver haired idiot.

"I heard he told everyone that you were his _friend_, and that he was trying to help you with your crush." Lena said thoughtfully, fully unaware of her friend's reaction.

To cut it short, Nakuru blanced. Not just mentally, but physically as well. Which is why, she started choking on a piece of her lunch. Rinku patted her friend on the back gently, looking sympathetic. "He WHAT?" Frowning, Lena turned and finally noticed Nakuru's reaction. "I said…"

"I HEARD what you said!"

Lena pouted, "Then why did you ask me?"

Promptly, Nakuru started choking again.

Still trying to knock the offending piece of food out of her friend, Rinku joined the conversation. "I think it's rather nice actually. This way, it'll put an end to the rumours." _And any more attacks._ She added silently, trading a look with the blond, she had been thinking the same thing. "Besides, it'll give you a chance to get back your ring without any more rumours as a result." During the hospital visit, Nakuru had accidentally told her friends that Yue was still in possession of her ring.

Nakuru cringed, she had been hoping that this topic wouldn't come up today, or any time soon. She really, really hate lying to her friends.

"Actually… …"

Immediately, her friends locked onto her like hawks, sensing the discomfort. Fearing the worst, Rinku spoke slowly. "What is it, Nakuru-can?"

Looking down guiltily, Nakuru mumbled into her lunch box. "He kinda came… and we… he… to the hospital… left the ring… stormed away…"

"WHAT?!"

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As expected, Lena and Rinku, especially Rinku, went ballistic when they learned what had happened after they had left the hospital. Well, technically, Rinku just gave Nakuru this, disappointing, sad look. But that was bad enough as it is.

It seems, evidently, that her friends had, for some reason, been blaming Yue for everything. Even the trip to the hospital. Especially the trip to the hospital. Nakuru frowned, _what exactly happened that time, I have to know. _What ever it is, it had made her friends extremely protective. Hence why she is running away right now.

Well, technically, I'm not really running… she reasoned to herself, and I'm not even hiding really. She looked up and down the crowded hall. Well, not, if they look in the senior level. Now that she stopped and think about it, since she's already here, she might as well look him up. Yes, it's a bad idea. A very bad idea. But… she seem to be just unable to walk away from him especially after that day. 

_Luckily, before she started hyperventilating, the weight was removed. Yue stood up abruptly, distancing himself from the bed, from her. Nakuru, stone still, watched as Yue pushed away the chair blindly, focusing anywhere but her. _

_Finally deciding on a point somewhere above her head, he spoke, "I have wasted enough time here." His voice was cold, level, calm. Just like when I first bumped into him._

With equal calm and coldness, he reached the door with long, powerful strides. And in an array of silver strands, Yue was gone.

ESPECIALLY that time. Apparently, he had found the time and the chance to leave the ring in the room before he stormed out. _But no time to say good bye, humph._ How he did it without her notice was a mystery, since it was in a velvet box and everything. Actually, that was probably what surprised her the most. That the cheap, toy ring had been put into an expensive, very expensive looking case. A dark, blood red, velvet case. Like that of an engagement ring's.

Nonetheless, she was happy to have her ring back. Not, that it was a pair with Yue's. No way. But just, just that for some reason, she seems to have made a personal connection with it; it had somehow became very important to her. Nakuru held up her right hand, letting the light bounce off of her ring finger. She smile as she admired the silver object, it really was beautiful, even for something of its calibre.

Perhaps… she should really rethink this… 

Ruby eyes flickered left and right as Nakuru suddenly found herself surrounded by a group of senior girls, backed up against a wall. Right in the centre, and evidently their leader, was an unnaturally beautiful girl. Almost in a sickening way. And her hair, it's so long. _Wow, it's all the way down to her calf. Wonder how she keeps it so smooth… …_

"Ummm, may I help you?" Nakuru asked tentatively, unsure of what else to do.

The long, dark haired girl spoke first in reply. "I heard you just got out of the hospital, are you alright? You poor thing. And if you are a friend of Yue-sama's, you are a friend of ours." _Huh?_ _Oh, right, he told everyone that I was his friend……_

"Come here, you look so weak." Before she could even reply, Nakuru was promptly pulled into a hug. Her face buried in a cascade of loose, dark strands; nearly suffocating.

"_My Yue-sama!" _ Her breath caught. Shaking, Nakuru pushed the older girl away roughly, backing up until she was once again against the wall.

_My head, it hurts like hell._

Whimpering in pain, Nakuru clutched at her head, pulling auburn strands to their limit. Tears gathered in her eyes, clenched shut to block off the all the sudden too bright light. Images, picture after picture. Darkness. Fear. Nakuru bit down on her lip to stop from screaming out loud, hard enough to draw blood . Definitely hard enough to draw blood, as she tasted metal on her tongue. So many things were running through her head at once, so many emotions, some she had not felt for years. She couldn't think, couldn't move, all her senses flooded to their maximum capacity with these.. these…

"… Nakuru…!"

Whaa…? 

Suddenly, her eyes snapped open.

The girl, she was still standing there. Clearly, she was surprised too. But that voice, it wasn't hers. No.. …

"Now if you'll excuse me, I need to talk to my dear friend here." A hand grabbed her around the arms and began to drag forward, away from the small ring of girls. A pale hand. Long locks of silvery hair brushed against her face as she more or less fumbled along.

She flinched as sunlight invaded her vision and looked up in surprised when a large shadow shielded her face.

"What were you thinking!" Yue practically yelled into her face the moment he made sure she could stand on her own.

Nakuru flinched again, "Looking for you… …" Ruby eyes widened when she realized what she had said, _damn him, asking me that when I'm still in shock._

Yue stared at the girl in front of him, the source of all his anger, and worry. _She came here especially for me._ Closing his eyes in an effort to calm himself, he spoke.

"Okay, you found me. What do you want?"

"The ring."

Yue opened his eyes, casting a curious gaze over the shorter girl, contemplating exactly what he should say. "The ring."

Rolling her eyes, Nakuru held up her right hand and practically shoved it into the other's face. Completely unaffected by the violent gesture, Yue merely grabbed the said hand and studied the ring. For one second, a ghost of a smile appeared on his face. Instead of letting go, his grip tightened, his breath tickling Nakuru's palm. _It's so soft…… _Nakuru flushed as she watched the boy study her ring, his touch hot on her hand, almost burning her skin. Coughing slightly, she snatched it away from his eyes and held it defensively in her other hand. All the while glaring curiously at the silver haired boy. Realizing his mistake, Yue immediately took a step back. _Can't get too close. _Looking away now, he spoke in a distant voice.

"It is yours, I was just returning it." Certain that he had his emotions under control, Yue turned his gaze back on to Nakuru. " And now that you know, you can stop coming the senior hall now." With that as a last remark, he turned and walked away, back up the stairs and he had dragged her down from. And once again, Nakuru was left hanging speechless except for a few unintelligible noises.

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_This has got to be one of the weirdest days I've ever had. First, the friends thing. Then this._ Nakuru thought to herself as she gently massaged her head. Whatever happened back there, it had hurt. What annoyed her even more was the fact that she couldn't even remember what happened, just a big blot of haziness. And of course, head splitting pain. _Maybe it's a rebound from the concussion… …_

Unconcerned, she shrugged it off and filed it away for later investigation.

Opening the doors to her own classroom, she found herself again, the centre of attention. 30 pairs of eyes stared incredulously at her entrance, along with a very angry pair of glasses covered eyes.

"Umm, I'm sorry? Sensei?" Nakuru grinned guiltily. It's not like she planned this… … well at least not all of it. She forgot the time and the fact that the seniors had a free study period did not help with the whole "it's class time already" thing.

To everyone's surprised, the sensei smiled. Albeit in a very evil, bone chilling way, but nonetheless, a smile. "It looks like Akizuki-san just volunteered to be our class organizer and representative for this years festival!"

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"Oh come on, cheer up Nakuru-chan!" Rinku said as she packed away her things for the day. It's really not that bad being the class the representative during festival time, in her opinion. While it is a lot of work and they are often busy during the actual festival, and almost always ending up missing the entire thing. Which is why most people hate being the class representative. And why Rinku has taken on the job for the past 2 festivals.

"Easy for you to say." The headache completely forgotten, Nakuru complained whole-heartedly to her two friends. "And just because I was late too."

Lena looked up from her bag, "Where were you exactly? We thought something had happened to you!" _Something did!_ Nakuru had to bite her tongue to stop herself from blurting that out. _No, I don't want them to worry anymore than they already are. Besides, I'll probably just get another lecture again._

"Nakuru?"

"What? Oh, it's was nothing, I…I thought I had forgotten something, so I went back to get it. That's all." Putting on her brightest smile, Nakuru turned to her blond friend. Looking as if wanting to say something, Rinku gave her a strange look, but thankfully, remained silent.

"Come on, let's go home."

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The next day was hectic.

Apparently, this year the festival is a bit different. Instead of each class taking up an event, a senior and junior class is to work together on one event or booth. It seems that this is done to promote co-operation between different grades, as well as decreasing the work load of each class representative and the overall cost of the festival.

For Nakuru, it was the best new she had heard all week. Ever since the morning, she has been jumping around, just ecstatic over the whole thing. _I have a bad feeling about this,_ Rinku thought as she smiled when Nakuru waved enthusiastically from across the room.

"Come one, Rinku, cheer up." Turning her head slightly, Rinku looked over at her blond friend, a tiny crease between her brows. "What is she's paired with…"

Cutting the brunette off, Lena waved her hands impatiently, "There's no way, he's on the council. So there fore he can't be a class representative at the same time."

Rinku blinked as Lena turned, staring at her with a pair of glittering, starry eyes. "How romantic is that, Rinku! Working with a handsome senior on a sunny afternoon, in one of their houses. Or maybe, they'd have tea. Then, maybe a piece of glue would get stuck in hair, and he'd have to lean in and…. …"

"Lena!"

The blond smiled at her friend's blushing face, "Oh come on Rin'. Besides what could possibly go wrong this time!" Lena opened her mouth again but was surprised into silence by the sudden crackled from the hall.

"Please excuse the interruption. But the following is an announcement from the student council. As you all are aware of, each event in this year's festival is to be hosted by a team of one junior and one senior class. And here is the following pairings of each class:

Misako Kunichi 1A with Aoi Shiro 2D

Hisotake Hinami 1B with Jyraya Sari 3B

Toshiro Kika … …

… …

… …

Akizuki Nakuru 2B …"

Everyone became silent in that single moment, all anxious yet nervous for the pairing. If they are unlucky, they could end up with a younger class, and that would suck, a lot. Everybody seems to be holding his or her breath, waiting for the result. Nakuru just clasped her hands together excitedly, eager to know who her knew festival buddy is, as she had now dubbed it.

" with Kinomoto Toya 3A…"

Then as if one, every girl in the room turned to Nakuru, fixing her with the deadliest glare they could come up with. Except Rinku and Lena of course, they just looked at each other in shock and wordless disbelief. Nakuru, on the other hand, sweat dropped and remained completely clueless as she became pinned underneath the intense gazes.

Lena recovered first, and promptly buried her eyes in her hands. "Never mind, I take it back. It just did." Shaking her head profusely, Lena sank deeper into her chair, "Why? Just why did she have to be paired up, with the SECOND HOTTEST guy in our school!?"

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Author's note: Phew, now that this is off my mind, I feel much, much better. Please review! Just to make sure there are actually people still reading this thing.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Refer to previous chapter. And the one before that, and the one before that, and… …

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To say Nakuru was confused was an understatement. For, who knows how many times, during this week, she was yet again the subject of every girl's hatred. And the fact that she didn't even have to physically do anything this time has to count for something too. Completely glued to her seat, Nakuru forced her frozen facial muscles into an apologetic smile. At least, what she hoped to be an apologetic smile. _I wonder what I did this time, _ruby eyes flitted across the room nervously. The glares increase tenfold. Nakuru flinched, _oooook, so the smile thing didn't work_.

Feeling that she at least deserved a chance to redeem herself, Nakuru cleared her throat to speak. And let her mouth hang slightly agape upon realising that she didn't even know what to say in defence. Considering she didn't know what she did in the first place. Now she's really nervous.

Rinku glanced at Nakuru with evident worry. It's quite obvious that the girl had absolutely no idea what to do. She the glanced around the room, brows furrowing in thought. This simply would not do, silence means guilt, and by the looks of it, Nakuru's getting guiltier by the second. Biting her lip in determination, Rinku walked to stand beside her friend, noticing with relief that Lena had done the same. After all, safety in numbers, right?

"This means that Kinomoto-san's going to be coming here a lot, right?" Nakuru grimaced at her friend, really, it was just a bit too squeaky. But fortunately it worked. A buzz broke out immediately across the room, heads coming together to exchange excited whispers. Well, this is turning out to be a great morning.

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The mood in class 3-A on the other hand, was much more relaxed. In fact, no one even heard the announcement. A very common occurrence, seeing how noisy the room is. The noise, that is now precisely bothering one annoyed class representative. Running a hand through his hair in resignation, Touya heaved a sign. Looking down at his sloppy writing across the page, not even reaching a quarter of the page, he had a sudden urge to throw his hands in the air the punch someone really, really hard.

"You seem to be having a good morning," A sarcastic voice drifted from somewhere over his head. Touya looked up through his fringes. None other than the ice block himself was standing in front of his desk, smirking. _That sadistic bastard._ Touya growled slightly, some friend he has, laughing at a friend in need. Glaring his best evil eye, Touya crossed his arms.

"It's not my fault that I'm the stinking representative and I'm the one who has to do the organization for the festival." Touya exclaimed hotly, blowing a piece of hair out of his face. However, he was thrown off track when his friend shifted slightly at his words. No, not just shifted slightly, but shifted slightly in discomfort. Brown eyes widened, Touya leaned in unconsciously, peering up at the boy in front of him.

Frowning, Touya tapped his jaw in thought. Despite the urge to shout out something on his own, he has known Yue long enough to know that he will only speak in his own time, and never someone else's. So, Touya forced himself to be quiet and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

And wait –

"Oh for god sakes, WHAT?"

Yue smirked at his friend's flushed face. But as soon as the moment passed, the smirk disappeared. Now Touya was even more curious, since Yue practically lives on seeing discomfort in his friends.

"I…" Another shift. Yue looked away.

"You?" Raising an eyebrow, Touya prompted.

Clearing his throat, Yue took a breath before speaking again. This time, looking Touya in the eye. "I think you should work on the festival at my house."

Touya blinked. Well, what else was he suppose to do? He watched as the silver haired boy stalked away. Stalked away. Touya sighed, _oh well, whatever he says._

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"Kinomoto Touya." Rinku nodded. Nakuru bit into her chocolate thoughtfully. "Nope, never heard of him."

Lena slapped her forehead in resignation. They have, for the entire lunch, been trying to make Nakuru realise how dangerous her situation is. That is, how dangerous it is in a school full of jealous teenage females.

But of course, nothing's getting through.

_But if we are to work together, shouldn't we at least be familiar with each other first? I mean, it just wouldn't do for us to be arguing when we're supposed to be co-operating. _Nakuru eyed the third floor, _Yue…… _

Realising what she had thought of, or rather, whom, her eyes widened. So surprised that she was Nakuru actually physically recoiled, jerking backwards at the direction of her thoughts. Ignoring the worried looks coming from her companions, she shook her head. Despite her effort, her thoughts drifted back to their last meeting. In that hallway. With that girl. And the headache. And of course the ring… …

"…kuru?"

Nakuru vaguely registered a voice speaking to her, looking up, Rinku's face came into focus. "Whaa?"

The brown haired girl pursed her lips, obviously worried. Nakuru smiled brightly, in what she hoped was a reassuring smile, "Aww, don't look like that Rin'. I was thinking about how good dinner's going to be today!" Just to prove her point, she became starry eyed and dreamy, perhaps a little drooling as well. Mildly disgusted and relieved, Rinku smiled and turned away, resuming her conversation with Lena.

Surprised that her friend actually bought the story, Nakuru blinked a few times before she realised that she had gotten away with it. Shrugging, she resumed her line of thoughts. _I just really don't get him at all. One minute he's nice, the next he's cold as ice. Then he's mad at me for no reason. Yet sometimes he'd be all embarrassed and shy. What's with him?_ Unwilling, Nakuru felt drawn to the third floor windows again, shifting her gaze. _And all the strange things that have been happening, they all had something to do with him. The kiss, the ring. I wish there was some way I could understand him… …_

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Yue was, frustrated, to say the least. The plans for the festival, due in two weeks, are nowhere near done, let alone the actually preparations. Half of the class representatives don't even know that they'd be in partners. _Especially the seniors,_ Yue thought, gritting his teeth,_ much good they are._ Then, then, then. Letting out a slow breath, Yue looked out the window. He knows that even with all those reasons, he would not be as frustrated as he was right at that moment.

It's because of her. Violet glinted dangerously in the bright afternoon. He doesn't get her. He gave her her ring, so why had she come back last time? Doesn't she get it? It's dangerous to be around him, and she has been through enough as it is. There's no need for another trip to the hospital. Anger flared as Yue continued his thought. He had tried to smooth things over, but she just won't listen.

And especially since I haven't seen her for so long…… 

Covering his eyes, he swallowed. Trying to rinse his suddenly extremely dry throat. No matter what, every time he closed his eyes, that image came up. The image of a flustered, dazed, _alluring, _red head, from that day in the hospital. He knows perfectly that this frustration and anger was brought on by himself. He has been trying to avoid her, not that that was hard, in order to avoid thinking of THAT as much as possible. As result, this is what became of him.

Yue clenched his eyes tighter, trying to rein his feelings into control. God knows that he needs this time alone, last time was enough proof as it is. _Last time, I almost lost it. I almost gave in._

Then, why, why did I invite her to my house? 

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Strangely, Nakuru was in a good mood. Actually, she was in an extremely good mood. She was actually skipping and humming as she walked towards her house, maroon hair swaying away behind her. She had just found out the answer to her question. The key into the mystery room. The central piece of the puzzle. The … … surely you get the point.

For the first time in the past few days, a real grin appears across Nakuru's face. She had just found out that Kinomoto Touya, was none other than Yue's best friend.

She had figured out how to get through to the ice block.

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Author's note: ah, now I know why some authors prefer to do a story all at once. In order to write this chapter, I actually had to re-read a lot of my stuff and keep reminding my self to include certain things. So if there are factual mistakes, please go easy on me.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Refer to previous chapters.

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Once Nakuru has decided on a plan, she is not one to wait around for the so called perfect opportunity. Oh no. She's definitely anything but that.

"Oi! YOU! Kinomoto!"

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Touya had been in soccer practice for much of the afternoon, in preparation for the upcoming tournament. Lady Luck has been kind, and he was just setting up for his fifth goal of the game when it came. The ear-splitting yell that froze the said boy mid-pose: his right foot three feet up in the air, his body horizontal to the ground, right knee bending in a perfect pose. Well, it _was_ a perfect pose until Touya tried to stop his movements, and as Newton's law dictates, fell flat on his face.

That. Had. Hurt.

"Ouch." Nakuru grimaced. Ok, so maybe that hadn't been the best time to announce her presence after all. Judging from the way the tall boy is charging towards her now, it definitely was not.

"Who the hell are you and what the hell do you want?!" Touya glared accusingly at the annoyingly unapologetic looking girl, one hand still holding his poor injured nose.

"Umm, sorry?" The red head grinned chirpily, contrary to her words. Touya's eyes narrowed, he was really starting to dislike this girl. Normally he is not one to be impolite to ladies, but he might just make an exception. Just for her. Removing his hand now to face her properly, Touya repeated his question.

"Who are you, miss?"

Nakuru's smile widened, sticking out a hand in glee. "Akizuki Nakuru."

Still looking at the girl in front of him suspiciously, Touya looked down at the offered hand. Frowning, he looked back up at the red head's face. Deep maroon hair, ruby eyes, pale skin. Nope, doesn't seem to ring any bells in the "girl-stalkers-that-are-dangerous-and-just-waiting-to-get-him-alone-to-pounce-on-him" list. Frowning still, Touya slowly grasped the outstretched hand, glancing up every other second. Hey, one can never be too careful.

_What's he waiting for?_ Nakuru thought to herself curiously as she watched the taller boy glare at her hand. _Did I scare him or something?_ The red head crunched up her face at the thought. If that was the case, then maybe her plan won't go as well as she thought. Feeling unused muscles already screaming in protest, Nakuru was ready to give up on the whole handshake thing before the other finally took it.

She sighed in relief. Her arm had really started to hurt. A lady should never be asked to do anything for too long. Holding a grin, still, Nakuru studied the boy up close. He is very cute, no wonder so many girls would fall for him. The messy brown hair, the deep chocolate eyes, the pink soft lips, and the toned muscular body. If she wasn't so infatuated with Yue, she might actu-. Wait. WHAT? Since when was she infatuated with Yue? Oh, no no no. She was just saying that Yue was much more handsome than th- Did she think that Yue was handsome?

Suddenly realizing where her thoughts had gone, again, Nakuru blushed. Albeit, she doesn't do it often, but when she does, combined with her pale complexion it could be seen a mile away. However, the more she tries to veer away from it, the more she blushes. Two stains of red adorned her cheeks as she looked away, hoping to hide her heated face.

Raising an eyebrow at the state of redness of his companion, Touya said nothing, but rather took the time to study this strange girl. She's not all that bad looking, he noted, but would've never pegged her for the blushing type. Brown eyes raked up and down the petite frame, almost critical in their gaze. Not bad. Not quite his type but not bad. If she really wants to, maybe he might just fancy her with a date or tw—

"What are you two doing?"

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_Oh this is just great,_ Nakuru though miserably. Now this Kinomoto guy is going to think that she likes him. Not that he's to blame really, since she is practically a tomato right now. Desperately hoping to come up with something sensible and smart to say, she looked back up.

"What are you two doing?"

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Touya, blinked. Turning his head slowly, he took in the sight of his silver haired friend. Oh yeah, _that_ silver headed ice block. But really, who else?

Still a bit surprised, Touya tried to raise his right hand in his usual greeting. Only to find that he, in fact, could not. Well, technically, he could and did. Except-

"Ooof!"

-his hand was still in that hand-shake of theirs and since neither had let go, poor Nakuru's arm was pulled up along with Touya's hand. And been unprepared as always, she lost her balance and fell straight into the chest of, none other than, Kinomoto Touya.

Equally unprepared for the change in balance, Touya instinctively held out his hands for balance; only to somehow end up loosely around Nakuru's shoulders, inadvertently steadying her as well. In the end, the two managed to pull themselves into a rather intimate position, one's face buried in the other's chest and arms wrapped together in an embrace.

Pools of melting violet latched on to Touya.

Yue was simmering.

He had not, NOT, been having a good day. But until now, he thought it really could not get any worse. It did. He was just passing the soccer fields by coincidence, on his way to pick up something for the up coming festival when he saw them. To be more precise, he was merely glancing icily over the game, actually considering greeting his friend before he left. Oh but not any more. Oh no. When Yue realised that Touya was in fact, not in the game; he had worried, just for a second. Ha, he was worried. Then he turned, and there they were.

Violet eyes had widened as the scene entered his vision. Touya and that girl, whom he still stubbornly refuses to name in his thoughts, were holding hands. And not just holding hands either, she was blushing. Blushing hard. Yue could see the way the tall boy was looking at her. The brown head was… was sizing her up, as if he was going to…to eat her. In that moment, Yue froze. Dead still. And stared as words came out of his mouth in a tumble of dry lips.

Long fingers clenched, with almost inhumane strength, at the file in his hands. Poor sheets crinkled in protest under the pressure, ruining perfectly outlined scripts. Yue was soundlessly as he moved his eyes over the two. All he felt at the moment was confusion. Confusion as to why he was feeling this way. Confused that he felt such resentment at this moment toward his friend. Confused that he would rather be the one in Touya's place. Confused that he would be so unsettled by this. Confused, most of all, that he was unable to hide this feeling.

Afraid of what he might do or say, Yue kept completely still. Limbs tense, teeth clenched. Just waiting. Waiting, as he felt his heart twist in an unfamiliar way.

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Nakuru was beyond shocked when she found herself in the brown haired boy's embrace. Face heating up immediately in anger, she pushed as hard as she could. Sadly, the other barely even moved under the pressure. Ruby eyes narrowed. Her head snapped upwards, fists clenched, ready to give the boy a piece of her mind. However, a flash of silver caught her eye. Curious, Nakuru turned.

"Yu-Yue?" Nakuru's eyes rounded. Yue was not looking pleased. At least, if the dangerous mix of violet and black in his eyes were anything to go by. Still, even now, Nakuru couldn't help but notice how her unconscious movements instinctively brought herself closer to the silver headed boy. Every small shift, every shuffle of steps brought her body closer to him.

At Nakuru's voice, Yue tore his gaze away from the taller boy and on to her. Immediately, he noticed her flushed cheeks. Another small twist in the cavity of his chest. Maybe this girl really was bad for his health. Then, just like always, violet locked on to ruby. The two colours met with a painful familiarity. Nakuru stopped to breathe altogether. It had really been too long. She had almost forgotten how the colours of Yue's eyes swirled and mixed to become one, yet somehow remaining separate. He, on the other hand, had never forgotten how Nakuru's eyes shimmered and shined in a strange yet entrancing dark glow. _I haven't forgotten, I haven't forgotten at all…_

Touya, mouth agaped, looked from one to the other, unsure of what to do. His intuition was telling him something, something that he was unaware of, had transpired between these two. Something much more than just a few chance encounters; something much more meaningful. Closing his mouth with an audible click, he looked again, from one to the other. Brows furrowed in thought. He was forgetting something. That he was sure of. But what?

Brown eyes widened as he snapped around to gaze at his friend. _That's right! This Akizuki was the one I was supposed to work with in the festival. Both of us were also supposed to go to Yue's house for the planning stage._ Could it be…?

It was Nakuru who broke away first, a little unnerved by the intensity of their shared moment. This can't be healthy. Unconsciously, she reached up to rubbed against the ring that she had now tied around her neck, for safety reasons. Only to realise a second later, that it was connected to him as well, jerking her hand away as if burned.

Looking away, Yue drew a calming breath and questioned, for the third time, "What are you two doing here?" This time, he chose to look at Touya.

Clearing his throat slightly, Touya began to answer, only to be interrupted by a loud voice.

"I was just getting acquainted with Tou-ya-kun, since we're going to partners after all." Nakuru said in an accusing tone. Looking quite crossed that Yue had chose to ignore her for the question.

Violet gaze snapped back on to ruby. "Acquainted?" Yue forced himself to say through clenched teeth, while keeping his face carefully blank. _And, Tou-ya-KUN?_

Maroon hair bobbed up and down in affirmation. Nakuru felt a bubble of irritation rise as Yue's face became, once again, blank. Then suddenly, in a moment of enlightenment-turning abruptly and jumping upwards, wrapping her lithe limbs around his body- Nakuru bear hugged Touya. All the while squealing madly.

"I can't waiiiiittt to work with you Touya-kun!" Ruby eyes were veiled slightly, watching for Yue's reaction. Nakuru's grin brightened even more as she noticed the suddenly darkened expression on the other boy's face. Sadly, only for a second before-

"WHAT THE HELL! Get off of me!!!!!!!!!!!!"

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"Insufferable girl, what was she thinking…crazy…can't just grabbing on to people like that…get herself killed…mad…" Touya wrote furiously into his note book as he mumbled on and on about what happened yesterday. Or even better, this morning. Just when he thinks the whole mess and odd behaviours were over, this morning, that crazy girl had jumped on him again. Hugging him, no, choking him to death.

Crack. He stared dismayed, at the broken pen. Running a hand through his messy mop of hair, he sighed. Somehow, he had pissed off his -ice block passing off as a human being- friend again. Ever since this morni-

Wait.

Wait a –

Oh.

OH.

Damn.

"I can't believe this is happening."

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Rinku looked nervously at her friend. She traded a glance with Lena, who was looking just as suspicious and nervous. Nakuru was, to put it in a simple word, ecstatic.

Ever since this morning, Nakuru has been in an extremely good mood, supporting a huge grin on her face. There was an extra bounce in her step, a pitch higher in her greetings, a brighter sparkle in her eyes. And frankly, that was never good for anybody.

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Humming slightly, Nakuru packed away her books, getting ready to leave. Usually, she would walk with her friends, but they had club meetings to attend to, so Nakuru was left alone to fend for herself. She didn't really mind. In her opinion, sometimes a little time by oneself is no so bad. A distant commotion pulled her away from her books towards the door of the classroom. A group of girls was the source of all the noise. Craning her head higher, she caught a glimpse of what seemed to be- no, no, it can't be- silver hair. A sense of horror passed over Nakuru momentarily. She knew it was probably a bad idea to provoke the guy, but really, she didn't think he'd come back for revenge. She was teasing his friend. She knew he didn't like people yelling and shouting, or showing any sort of emotion at all, around him. But now that she thinks about it…

Nakuru gulped. She really hoped she was wrong.

As fate would have it, she wasn't. The crowd dispersed to reveal none other than the only person she does not want to see right now. Nakuru tried looking anywhere else but the silver haired boy. However, the technique didn't work as well as she had hoped, since the object she was trying to avoid kept on getting bigger, and bigger, and bigger. _Damn he is tall,_ she thought as she finally looked straight ahead and came face to face with Yue's chest. Scrunching her face in distaste, Nakuru looked up, hoping to gain more of an equal ground. Though expecting it, she was stilled shocked at the height difference. Standing so close, she was barely reaching his nose. Disorientated, Nakuru backed up half a step to gain back some perspective.

Yue looked on, stony faced, expressionless. In truth, he was, nervous he suppose. This is the only feeling he could name right now. There're also at least another dozen running through his mind at the moment, all scrambling together to form one giant mirage of confusion. Earlier, Touya had, in no uncertain terms, told him to deal with his problems before he starting snapping out at everybody. So here he was, trying to deal with his problems.

"Going home."

A delicate eyebrow raised half a centimetre. That wasn't even a question. Nonetheless, still nervous, Nakuru merely nodded. Then came a moment of silence. Pale fingers came in contact, briefly, with hers. The touch sent a cold shiver down up her arm, an alien yet pleasant feeling. Unconsciously, Nakuru licked her lips and looked down, trying to ignore the strange feeling. Yue was doing no better. He had been trying to reach for her bag when he accidentally brushed against her hand. And then, then when Nakuru did the thing with her lips…

"Hurry up. Let's go." Yue said roughly as he grabbed the bag and headed for the door.

Ruby eyes jerked upwards, "Wait, what? Where? Hey, come back here!"

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Wearily, Nakuru looked up at her companion for the umpteenth time. And just like all the previous times, his expression had not changed. As it turns out, Yue was going to walk her home. For what purpose, she didn't know. Normally, she'd be ecstatic about this. She has been trying to get a chance to get to know this guy for the past few days. But, somehow, this tense atmosphere wasn't quite what she had in mind.

"So…" She began casually, hoping to get some kind of reaction. Surprisingly, she did. Except, it wasn't the type she had expected. Instead of responding in words, Yue turned suddenly to the right; entering a small, secluded park. Curious, Nakuru followed, sticking close. Finally, they came into a small area with a small lake and a few benches scattered about. _A picnic area,_ Nakuru thought, smiling slightly,_ how nice._

A flash of movement caught her eye as she drank in the view. "Oh look! A squirrel!" Squealing in glee, she darted forward, arms out stretched. In a frenzy of limbs, Nakuru began to chase after the wild animal.

The sudden movement surprised Yue, feeling himself almost pushed to the side as a blur of maroon started forward. _What the…_With a burst of speed, he instinctively reached forward to catch Nakuru's hand, to keep her close. Which was just as well, since somehow in the very next second, she was falling. Tripping over an almost non-existent twig, Nakuru's legs tangled together, taking both out from underneath her in a blink of the eye. And there she was, falling through air.

"Ahhhh!" Ruby eyes widened, hands grabbing at thin air, trying to regain balance. Then, as suddenly as it came, the weightlessness disappeared, only to be replaced by a pair of strong, powerful arms. Nakuru's body jerked up and backwards, maroon hair trailing by her face in a shimmering wave. With a soft thud, her back hit something warm, and hard.

"Ummph." Gasping softly, Nakuru remained dazed as her heart hammered relentlessly against her chest, struggling to break free. The arms stayed as she slowly evened out her breathing. Much calmer now, Nakuru started to notice how quiet everything had gone. The soft ruffle of trees, the chirping of birds, the crinkling of leaves. All gone. All that remained were sounds of breathing. The warm, hard wall behind her, she realised, was Yue's chest. Deep breathes. In. Out. In. Out. The two of them, Nakuru thought distractedly, were breathing in unison. Afraid to move even a hair and unsure of what to do, she merely waited. In truth, it was kind of nice. She was enveloped in a soothing coat of warmth, body heat and surprisingly, serenity. Her standing here, in Yue's arms, was – peaceful.

Breathing in a shuddering breath, Nakuru felt Yue move behind her, the first time since her fall. Burying his nose in soft, maroon tresses, Yue mumbled, "Do you have your ring?"

Body tensed under Yue's touch, Nakuru hesitated in answering._ What was going on?_ Just when she had calmed down a little, he had to go and do this, and now her heart was all fluttery again. "Y-yes."

His nose buried in deeper. "It's not on your finger."

Dark eyelashes fluttered over ruby irises, "It's- I put it around my neck."

A sigh. "Good, that's safer for you."

On first instinct, Nakuru wanted to rebut and say something along the lines of she can protect herself. But…this time, Yue seemed sincerely worried about her safety. As much as she liked to get a rise out of him, Nakuru knew that this was a rare moment for Yue, and she wasn't about to just ruin it like that.

Still in a back to front hug, Nakuru leaned back slightly, as an experiment. As soon as she relaxed, she felt the arms around her tighten. She smiled softly; she would have never thought that Yue'd be one to be protective. _This is strange… yet, it's so…natural…_

"Let's call a truce." Nakuru frowned, a truce?

Sensing her question, the silver haired boy spoke again. "No more…unpleasantness."

The red head turned this time, or at least, she tried to. Those steel like arms around her now became a binding, holding her steadily in place. After squirming slightly, Nakuru gave in with a loud sigh. If he didn't want to her to turn, with her strength now, that's not going to change any time soon.

"Fine, fine. A true it is. Happy?" Nakuru raised an eyebrow in amusement, when Yue merely nodded once in to her hair.

The moment she felt his arms loosen, in relief or something else, she did not know, she turned. Hoping to be able to catch Yue's expression, Nakuru leaned in and peered at her companion's face. Once again, violet met ruby. However, this time, what greeted Nakuru was much more different. A thousand things seems to be flashing through Yue's eyes at the moment, some she recognised and some she didn't. And something else as well. Something she had seen so long ago, yet maybe only yesterday…

"Don't get lost going home."

And with that, he left. Just like that.

Nakuru blinked as she felt a puff of wind brushing strands of hair into her eyes. Blowing them away in annoyance, she stared at Yue's retreating back. Crossing her arms across her chest, Nakuru pouted.

"Ha! Getting lost! As if."

A pair of violet eyes flashed in amusement, the ghost of a smile melting into the wind.

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Author's note: Um, sorry, I've being busy for a while so I never got a chance to write this. Well, here it is, I hope you like it.


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